Day Trips: Hungry locals benefit from farmer going back to roots

Aug. 1, 2013

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5 Things Not to Miss

1 Learn more about historic prairie towns at Prairie Village, two miles west of Madison on the shores of Lake Herman. Prairie Village has more than 40 antique-filled buildings reliving the days of an active turn-of-the-century main street. The village is open from Mother’s Day to Labor Day and features a number of special events during that span, including the 51st annual Steam Threshing Jamboree August 23-25. For information, visit www.prairievillage.org. 2 Lake Herman State Park is located on a peninsula and offers visitors spectacular views of Lake Herman. Camping, boating, fishing and cross country skiing are favorite activities at the park. Observe wildlife in the native oak woodlands and prairie grasses that are home to a variety of birds and animals. Melting glacial ice formed this 1,350-acre lake thousands of years ago. 3 If you’re looking to do a little fishing on your trip, try Walker’s Point Recreation Area. Tucked along the shore of Lake Madison, this small but complete park meets the many needs of campers, anglers and boaters. Campsites offer picturesque views of the 2,800-acre lake, while anglers enjoy both on- and off-shore fishing. For information, call 256-5003. 4 If you enjoy golfing on the green, schedule a visit to The Lakes Golf Course. The nine-hole course features plush, rolling fairways that reward creativity, classic greens that test execution and subtle elevation changes that enhance the panoramic view of Round Lake and Lake Madison. The Lakes Golf Course has something to offer every level of golfer, from the beginner to the more seasoned pro. For information, go to www.golfatthe lakes.com/course. 5 Enjoy how one famous South Dakota artist depicts the beauty of the region by stopping by John Green’s studio and gallery on Madison’s main street, 111 S. Egan Ave. Green is a three-time state duck stamp winner and won the Judge’s Award of Merit at the National Wildlife Art Show. He has been a professional wildlife artist for 30 years and was selected as the state artist of the year by the South Dakota Hall of Fame in 1991.

@argusleader.com

Visit argusleader.com/section/daytrips for photo galleries, video and story links from previous Day Trips locations, including Linda’s Garden.

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CHESTER — As a local farmer, Linda Krsnak is providing vegetables found mostly in specialty grocery stores alongside the tried-and-true products of the plains.

Take Napa cabbage, for example. It’s a member of the cabbage family that originated in China and one of the non-native produce that customers at her farm consider a delicacy.

Krsnak, who operates her own business, Linda’s Garden, sells her harvests at area farmers markets and straight off her one-and-a-half acre farm north of Chester.

In addition to her varieties of cabbage, she sells traditional choices such as tomatoes, peppers, a wide variety of onions and potatoes and just about any melon she can think of.

Krsnak has been growing more than 300 different vegetables, herbs and fruits on her farm 34 miles northwest of Sioux Falls for nine years. She shows customers around her gardens, too.

The diversity of what’s growing outside in Linda’s Garden is a direct reflection of her customers. It started with shoppers from India who were looking for produce from their home country. She didn’t have it but vowed to try growing it.

Craig Rickert, a Sioux Falls commercial real estate developer, has been a loyal customer for two years, stopping by the farm near his home at Brant Lake.

Rickert, 57, said the quality of the growing conditions played a major factor in his decision to start buying from local farmers. When he purchases his spinach and kale, he’s confident in the quality of product he’s receiving.

“I can see how she is growing the vegetable as opposed to not being able to,” he said. “To me, the benefit is also talking to these folks and seeing how much care they put into growing the best vegetable they possibly can.”

Krsnak has cultivated a number of vegetables and fruits from countries such as Egypt and Australia in her garden. She said she takes on the challenge of growing these non-native fruits and vegetables because “it seems like the right thing to do.”

She’s interested in what her customers like to eat.

“If somebody is purchasing vegetables from us, and they have a suggestion on something that’s not typical and they are a loyal customer, we feel like we have an obligation to try growing something special for them,” she said.

Krsnak uses four high tunnels — frames covered with plastic — to grow the produce. That helps her extend the season by starting earlier in the spring and going later in the year.

High tunnels also serve as a way to control temperature and humidity, wind, rain and keep out disease-ridden pests. Krsnak said the tunnels see extensive use during the growing seasons.

“With the high tunnels, they grow in the ground like everything else, but it is somewhat environmentally controlled,” Krsnak said. “Because of the cover, we can sort of manipulate the environment a little by either closing the cover to capture the heat or raise it to keep it out.”